Kagerou Project Countdown Festival -oneshots&drabbles-
by The Deceiving Maiden
Summary: A collection of oneshots I managed to write for the event on Tumblr. When i finish with the next character's chapter, I'll update it here instead.
1. Ayano

**Deceiver: I fail too many times. I only got this and Shintaro's oneshots done (there's one for Soda Can Day but I was not sure if that was canon). And Kido and Seto's are half done! T_T So once I'm done with the next one, I'll put it here on FF.**

~.~.~.~.~

**Ayano: Change**

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Nothing changed.

Ayano stared in disbelief as she watched Shintaro fell to the ground from the shot meant for Konoha. Momo's scream of her brother's name resounded in the room as she, Mary and Kido rushed to his aid. However, judging by the amount of blood pooling beneath his body, matching his trademark jacket's colour so well, he was as good as dead.

Nothing changed.

It happened again on this day. August 15th, the accursed day that was supposed to bring Shintaro to his demise a year ago. She truly believed that Shintaro broke through his sad fate and brought joyful future to everyone in the gang. And also allowing him to move on.

Nothing changed.

The girls' cries were soon followed by her two other younger siblings as they tried to stop the older teen's bleeding. It was worse, much worse than the time Shintaro got a graze from the terrorist attack a year ago. Ayano began to sob.

What was the point anyway? She had to watch everyone's sadness for a decade as the hazy heat, especially Shintaro's because she never thought he would be so affected by her death. It was her fault. If she hadn't found her father's documents, if she hadn't acted tough on this mission alone, if she had just told someone about it, none of this would have happened. Right now she would still be alive with her siblings and be as optimistic with Shintaro.

While everyone desperately yelled at each other to save the oldest teen, Ayano crept up to them. Eyes that were bright once in her life were dull as tears continued to run down her cheeks. She kneeled down beside them, watching Shintaro's quiet breathing as he stared aimlessly up at the ceiling.

"Can you hear me?" she whispered, a hand slowly caressing a pale cheek. She knew he couldn't feel or hear her, but she still did those gestures anyone. Yet, to her shock, there was a slight reaction from him. Before she could reconfirm it though, Seto suddenly pulled the oldest male member onto his back while Kido barked orders for them to retreat. Hibiya pulled at Konoha's arm, who was kneeling on the ground as he stared at the wall in front of him, yellow eyes now devoid of life. Kano ran up to them and helped the youngest member of their gang to drag the human android out of the faculty. Everyone was gone but Ayano stayed there, unmoving, wondering what would happen now.

"I guess we have to do this all over again." Ayano snapped her head around at the familiarly cold voice. A short woman with abyss black hair smirked at her, arms crossed in cockiness. The world around her began to fade into black and red, and a figure appeared behind the female monster. He was crouched on the ground, arms around his knees and completely still if not paying attention to his faint breathing.

"No…no…"

"You wished to save someone's future, you have to go on," Azami stated coolly. A silent countdown began as the red world burst back into the past. Ayano watched in dismay as everything that happened this past year, the fun times, the sad times, the dangerous times, began to erase in haste to make way for a new future. What future though? Would Shintaro go back to killing himself in his room, causing his and her siblings to die in the terrorist attack? Or would this whole year repeat again?

Nothing changed.

The world began to reform to the time after Shintaro's suicide. Why must they start here? This wouldn't save him! Ayano stood up from the floor as the familiar classroom began to form, each desk had a single flower in a vase on top except for hers, which had one paper crane she made instead. The summer's heat hit her back, starting to make her sweat a bit under her black winter uniform and red scarf. It was always hot in this world, but she didn't have another change of clothes and she didn't want to take off the scarf that gave her siblings happiness in their dark days.

Turning her eyes to the world of red outside the windows, Ayano began to wonder if she should just give up on this. It was truly a miracle when Shintaro walked out the door that day a year ago, maybe it was all thanks to Ene's constant pranks that Shintaro was able to step out and move forward with everyone (she wondered if she knew about these repeating days). If it weren't for him, none of the moments he and the gang shared together would have been created and treasured. Their smiles were the greatest of all, at the amusement park, the small silly missions they had, they were the best.

But now she have to say good bye to them and start all over again with everyone.

Ayano let out a sigh, noticing her Eyes heating up. It was time to face Shintaro. Putting on her best smile, she turned around and greeted him happily.

But that didn't last long.

The classroom had completely formed but there were differences. One it was like staring into a huge mirror with slight alterations. The classroom doors were gone, replaced by the windows and her standing at the other end of it. She was smiling on that side, not mimicking her at all. The second difference was the people standing at the center of the room. Both of them had their backs against each other, yet they didn't seem to notice each other's presence as they stared at the Ayano in front of them. She knew both of them, but they were the same yet different at the same time. One was in complete black while the other was dressed in heroic red.

"Shintaro…"

It took only a second, but the black Shintaro facing the other Ayano scrambled on his feet as he tried to chase after her. She had seen that scene so many times, yet this was the first time to see it in this perspective. And now the red Shintaro was striding towards her, his face blank yet his eyes were affixed onto her red ones in determination.

Awestruck for a second, Ayano quickly recomposed herself before she uttered the lines she had repeated many times before.

"I died. I'm sorry," the girls said at the same time. "Shall I say 'farewell'?"

The scene at the other end of the room ended the same. The black Shintaro yelled "_Don't leave me!_" and both he and the other Ayano collapsed into a dark space. Yet the Shintaro in front of her seem oblivious to everything that was happening behind him. He was watching her intently, making her feel nervous as she didn't know what to do.

"Farewell."

It took a while for her to realize it wasn't her that said those words at all. Ayano let out a small gasp as she looked back at Shintaro, truly looking at him this time, because the next thing she knew was that Shintaro was…he was…

Smiling at her.

A real, true smile.

Ayano was so shocked into silence that she stared wide eyed at her best friend. She never expected this to happen, even while she was alive. Suddenly, yet as if creeping into her mind, a voice hissed at her.

_It seems he will live. We won't go back._

A breeze was picking up behind her, along with an emotion she hadn't fully experienced in a long time. Relief, joy, happiness, and contentment all bubbled out of her as she let out a laugh and the breeze blew the transparent white curtains up. Reaching for her scarf, she unravelled it and instantly placed it around the genius' neck.

_He had been through so many traumas and deaths, yet he could still make it up to this point amazes me. _Ayano smiled at this.

_Azami-san, can I give him one more thing before he leaves?_

Staring at him with her Eyes, Ayano yanked the ends of the scarf, effectively pulling Shintaro close to her face with his, lips inches from each other.

"Shintaro…please…"

Her words came as soft whispers as she gave him everything she could offer in this short time. She watched in satisfaction as the heat from her Eyes transferred into his, making them glow red. A smile formed on the eighteen years old boy as he began to fade and go back to the real world, where he belonged.

Sighing, Ayano leaned back, the smile never leaving her face. She felt a presence next to her, but she wasn't fazed at all.

"You have taken my job, child," she muttered lowly. Ayano just smiled brighter at this point.

"Well I have been staying in this world with you for a long time," the returned chirpiness of her personality made Azami cringe. She didn't care though.

Before she thought nothing would change the fates set out for them. She was really about to give up just then. But because of Shintaro's change to go out into the world a year ago…

Everything changed.

~.~.~.~.~

**Deceiver: Just for the heck of it, I'm going to write a chapter story on this as well, this time after Shintaro woke up and the revelation of his connection with Ayano to the Mekakushi-Dan Trios. But let me finish satisfying my other plot bunnies first T_T Why can't you guys show up earlier in my non-busy life with Hetalia!?**


	2. Kido

**Deceiver: MADE IT! I don't really like this one, so bear with me ^_^lll**

**(uploaded this one early since I have to go to bed soon)**

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**Kido: We're not replacing her**

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For some reason, she was in bed.

Kido woke up to find herself in her room, a slightly warm, wet towel over her forehead. It was dark, the lights were off and the curtains were drawn. She could hear the world outside was raining cats and dogs along with the occasional sounds and flash of thunder and lightning. The alarm clock beside her bed glowed red as it read '**16:41**'. She instantly jumped up at the sight, the wet towel falling off her. How did she manage to sleep in? She hadn't done that for two years straight.

A sudden drowsiness made her wobble a bit, but she ignored it as she stood up. Kido didn't have time for this. She had to make dinner…no, she had to go for grocery shopping first before making dinner. She then remembered there was a mission today that she was supposed to go on and began to panic. What had she been doing? This was not like her!

Just as she reached for the drawers for her hoodie, the door suddenly opened. Kido snapped her head around to see who it was, ready to yell at that person for not even knocking. However, her vision blurred and her feet seemed to have slipped by itself. A startled yell followed by quick footsteps caught her ears and she fell into someone's arms. Blinking, the first thing she noticed was a bright shade of red.

"Nee…chan?"

"Hmm?" Kido looked up, her eyes adjusted better to finally see who it really was, which shocked her a lot.

"Shintaro?"

"What are you doing up? You're still having a fever!" Shintaro hissed at her in annoyance. Not noticing her struggles out of his arms at all, Shintaro lead Kido back into bed. As the blanket was placed over her body, she wondered why the shut in was here in the Mekakushi-Dan's secret base? It was quite a walk from his house to here, and he would go crazy without his computer, wouldn't he?

"Where's Kano?"

"Out on a mission. He offered to take it instead. Ah," he picked up the towel from earlier and dipped it into a bowl of water which Kido didn't notice before. "He's buying some medicine and groceries afterwards but currently he's caught in the rain. He'll be back after it lets up."

"Seto…"

"At work. He and Mary were worried about you, you know. Oh, and if you're asking about Mary, she's sleeping on the couch outside with Konoha," he finished once he twisted the towel dry and placed it back on Kido's forehead. The coolness soothed the heated skin and she almost purred at the touch. She could feel Shintaro's stare on her, but she didn't say anything, just letting her body relax. It was until Shintaro thought she was asleep when she asked one more question.

"Why are you here?"

Shintaro froze and saw Kido staring at him, eyes blank as she waited for him to answer. To be honest, Kido sort of hated him. As someone who went to the same school as her sister's, he could have prevented her death. Heck, her death was even in _that _very _school_. Not only that he just ignored it and became a shut in for three years, he even dared to wear Ayano's heroic color the first time they met and didn't know the actual connection with each other until Shintaro got his Eyes from _her_. Not from the monster, but from _Ayano._

It was not fair, they had to endure the despair of what they wished for in the past, and Shintaro just got it without wishing for anything. Not only that, the Eyes and red muffler that were from Ayano meant she trusted him with a great responsibility. But with _what? _Look after them? Puh-_lease_, he couldn't look after his socially awkward self. Sure he was able to take action in order to defeat the terrorist and stop Konoha from killing himself, but after getting shot twice from those two events, unreliable.

Just thinking about these reasons again made Kido mad. And Shintaro saw it, yet he talked in a vacant manner.

"They called me here," he said as he sat down on a chair by her bed. "I didn't want to, but Ene made me come. Momo wanted to too, but she had recording this afternoon, so she'll be coming by later. "

Kido didn't care what the other members were doing at this point; she just want the older teen to leave _now. _Shutting her eyes in a silent, yet dignified huff, she tried to get back to sleep and expect Shintaro to leave. However, after maybe maybe ten minutes, the older teen was still here.

"Just making sure you don't push yourself. That is exactly _why _you're sick in the first place," Shintaro gave her a hard look when she glared at him. Both the members stayed quiet, the girl fuming under her cover and while the boy stared off into space.

The rain continued to fall for the next half hour, with Kido still ignoring on what Shintaro was doing. She couldn't get back to sleep at all and she was sure her temper was warming the towel up faster than before. Not only that, but sometimes her Eyes kept on going on and off by itself. Probably because of her fever but usually stays on completely.

There was a frustrated growl coming from the side of her bed, so Kido turned her head around to see Shintaro was rubbing his eyes with his fingers, muttering under his breathe. Raising an eyebrow, Kido watched him remove his digits, eyes still closed as he slowly inhaled a breath of air. Opening them, his Eyes turned a sharp shade of red. Kido immediately felt hers heat up, but then gasped when Shintaro blinked his eyes rapidly.

"Damn it," he muttered as he rubbed his eyes again. Kido blinked at him before she pushed herself up by the elbows.

"It won't work if you keep rubbing them," she deadpanned.

"I know but it just stings!" Shintaro said before he put his hands down, blinking again until they turned black. "I never understand how you can stand them."

"Of course you wouldn't, you never asked for it."

It took a while before Kido noticed she blurted that out loud, a hand over her mouth when she saw the shocked look on Shintaro's face. "I…I mean…"

None of them said anything as they stared awkwardly at each other. Kido wished that he would stop so then she could disappear completely and let her die from accidently letting her hate get the better of her. But then again, maybe this was time for her to full on lash out at Shintaro. She didn't have the chance to since Seto pretty much did that for her and Kano months ago.

But before she decided she would do it, Shintaro sighed and slumped back onto his chair.

"Yeah, I didn't ask for it," he said in shame. "I didn't even know how Momo got her Eyes and assumed it was a gift." There was a hollow laugh. "How wrong I was. The reason why Ayano died in the first place, the reasons why you all have those Eyes, was because of the things you all had to go through and live with.

"I do feel bad…" Shintaro blinked when he realized he was speaking a bit too much, but he went on since Kido had seemed intrigued. "I feel bad for obtaining Ayano's Eyes and having her feelings within me. But she gave them to me for a reason," a smirk was on his lips as his eyes showed resolve, "and I want to perfect my control over our Eyes."

Kido stared at him in awe, never thought he would declare something like that. Smirking a bit, she said, "Well at least you can turn them on with your own will. I'll give you that."

"Maybe it's thanks to your extra strict training," Shintaro tried to joke. "I'm still working on it since I'm not as good as you, who can control it fully to conceal half a person's presence." Slowly, Shintaro's smile soon faded away as he watched Kido silently. The girl wondered what was wrong until he finally stated, "I'm not Ayano, and I can't be your elder sibling in her place. But even though that is true, you're not her as well."

Kido froze at that. She tried to say something but Shintaro grabbed the wet towel from her forehead again, soaking it in the tub. "Also, I'm not planning to take over your gang or anything. You know much more about running this than me, so you can be the leader." He placed the dry towel back where it was before she pushed her back down on the pillow. Silently, he got up and stretched. Kido didn't know what to say, so she just watched him left. But before he closed the door, he made one final comment.

"You don't have to be like your sister completely. She doesn't want you to push yourself. Neither does Kano and Seto."

The door closed shut, filling the room with a new silence. Kido stared at the door for a moment, before finally feeling tiredness wash over her at last.

_Nee-chan…maybe Shintaro is smart and can be the hero our gang needs after you left…but he can never replace you, you know? I can't give him the role of a leader…not just yet anyway…maybe. But he is reliable in some points so I'll take that…and he's right…_

Kido grabbed the pillow under her head and gave it a squeeze, hugging it tightly as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

_I can't replace you for everyone's sake._


	3. Seto

**Seto Day: Home**

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Yawning after he entered the base, Seto's eyes roamed around the dark room. It was late, so he didn't really expect anyone waiting for him. This was normal; really, it had been like that for a year ever since he started working late. Kido would always leave the leftover dinner in the fridge for him to show she cared about his wellbeing, but it just felt empty when there was no one here to say…

"Welcome home, Seto..." The tall teenage boy jumped at the soft voice, surprised. Walking towards the center of the room, he spotted a small figure curled up on one of the black couches, her white hair covering her form like a blanket.

"Mary?" Seto whispered as he kneeled down before the small girl. Normally she should have already retired to her room at this time, yet here she was, snuggled on the couch in her pink night gown.

Not hearing him, Mary continued to sleep soundly as she whispered again. "Welcome home..."

The boy stared at her with wide eyes, before they soften as he smiles. Patting her head, Seto wondered how long she had stayed awake waiting for him, before she dozed off. It amazed him how such a fragile girl, who feared her eyes like he and his friends did, would have such a big heart to wait for him.

"C'mon, Mary," he whispered again as he lifted her petite body into his arms. "Let's get you to bed."

The only response he got was the medusa wrapping her arms around his neck.

Making his through the dark base to Mary's room, Seto skilfully dodged all the furniture that threatened to trip him. Luckily they didn't have doorknobs in the base, so nudging the handle with an elbow was as easy feat. One he was in, Seto placed Mary on the bed, a blanket over form. Satisfied, Seto was about to leave, only to be stopped by a hand grabbing the bottom of his overall.

"Seto..." Mary mumbled impatiently in her sleep, which shocked the young teen greatly. What was wrong with her? Hand still on his outfit, Mary gave it a swift tug as her cheeks puffed up, whispering very softly, "...home..."

It took a moment for him to understand, but it made him smile. Kneeling down beside the bed, Seto patted her head again as he replied.

"I'm home, Mary."

The smile on the girl's face lit up.

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**Deceiver: Short, pointless, and it was meant to be a fluffy SetoMary drabble T_T I can't promise I'll get Kano's done since I haven't started on his yet (a sort of KanoKido oneshort/fanfic to boot) but I'll try…if I can't make it…well I'll guess I have to upload Shintaro's Day oneshot when it's appropriate.**


	4. Kano

**Deceiver: Made it! Sorry if it's messy! ^_^;**

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**Kano: Staying**

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Before, Kano didn't like the idea of new members joining the gang.

It was always him, Kido, Seto and Ayano together once they began to accept their Eyes. But after Ayano passed away, Kano wanted to keep the three of his friends close together. Not adding more to their gang.

The first new member was Mary, who surprised him and Kido when the small girl showed them her Eyes and how she obtained them. It took a lot of begging from Seto, but eventually Kido relented and let the petite girl live with them. It was what their former leader would have wanted anyway.

Kano noticed that Seto and Mary were close, very close. The girl always followed his friend like a little duckling going after her mother (which was a comment from Kido), and had difficulty interacting with him and Kido. Kido was awkward due to not being so feminine as Mary. But with Kano, they just seem to be hostile while trying to know each other, which usually ended with him as a statue for about two minutes.

They got over it, but still, Seto had Mary now.

Time passed and before he knew it, a total of five new members joined in under two days. An extraordinary idol, a cyber-girl, the idol's 18 years old brother who was a HikiNEET, a 12 year old boy acting the age of an adult, and a human android.

They were all unique in their abilities and strengths, and together they made the Trios' everyday lives more exciting than before. Kano could tell, because Kido seem to not glare as often anymore, and Seto would laugh more everyday whenever he sees the member interact with each other.

To Kano though, it was too much. Too sudden.

He didn't like it.

"Kano!"

The blond snapped out of his thoughts as a flying object came flying towards his face. He caught it skilfully, blinking when he saw it was a bottle on ginger ale. Looking up, he saw Kido a few feet away from him, her arms still out from throwing the beverage at him.

A shove at his shoulder brought his attention to Seto, who was holding up his bottle of melon soda while keeping the large bowl of popcorn tucked in his elbow. There was a mask of the screamer sitting on top of his head, making him look silly as he smiled at his blond friend while gesturing to the television.

"Come on, Kano! The movie is going to start!"

Another shove to his shoulder and Kano moved forward. Everyone was looking at him expectantly until he sat down with them on one of the black couches, with Kido and Seto sitting beside him. Mary was already cuddling up next to Seto, the ends of her hair wiggling about happily. Hibiya was trying to reach for the remote Momo was holding; claiming that the movie they were going to watch was stupid, childish and overall, boring. While the idol snapped at him, Shintaro plucked it out of his sister's hand and gave it to Konoha to take over, knowing the albino would have a good grip on it and wouldn't fiddle with the buttons.

"Quiet down everybody!" Ene appeared on their wide screen TV. "The movie is starting in 3…2…1!" and she was back in Shintaro's phone in a flash.

It was okay, considering that Kano didn't mind horror zombie film. There were occasional screams from the girls (and Shintaro and Hibiya), but really, nothing he and Seto couldn't handle. Konoha was just staring blankly, but he found the movie interesting. Seto was having his hands over Mary's ears when the characters swore too much to his liking, which made Kano snicker a bit because of the scared, yet confused look on the girl's face. Hibiya and Momo were clinging to each other, both refusing to let go or admit they were scared. There were mocking laughers from Ene whenever Shintaro screamed, before it was quickly followed by the red member yelled at her to stop recording his voice.

Kano sighed, wanting this over with already. Maybe he could make an excuse and call it a day early? Before he could move though, a pair of hands suddenly grabbed his arm, pulling him back with a sharp tug. Turning around, he saw Kido glaring at him, her eyes full of fright, yet her glare made one message clear.

_Leave right now and there will be Hell to pay!_

Oh, and Kido was scared out of her mind.

He decided to stay put, but in exchange, Kano forced Kido's hands off him and took one of them in his. Kido blinked at this, before nodding and resume back to the film.

Kano was surprised that Kido would oblige so easily. She looked up at him again, her mouth opening as she whispered softly, "Just stay."

He froze at this, with Kido staring at him expectantly as her hand's grip tightened in his. She wanted him to stay was all Kano could comprehend before he nodded and held onto her hand tighter.

As long as one of his friends needed him, it was alright.

~.~.~.~.~

**Deceiver: And Ene took a picture of that moment and sent it to everyone in the gang. Seto asked whens the wedding.**


	5. Mary

**Deceiver: For the heck of it, an early updated for Mary Day. Enjoy!**

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**Mary: Your ability**

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Mary was always amazed by Seto's ability to communicate with animals. He was the happiest whenever he talked to them. Like every time after breakfast and Seto didn't have anything to do that morning, Mary would find him leaning outside the window, having fascinating conversations with the birds, cats, dogs and squirrels that came by. He didn't need his Eyes to understand what they were saying at all, he just understood them.

From what she knew, they would give him various amounts of information. Like what the world outside was like today, would it rain tomorrow, would there be any trouble if he went out right now, did his boss need him, were any of their owners being mean to them. Sometimes they would even bring information that was related to their gang. Troubles, secret passages to laboratories, people disappearing, a strange haze showing up at an area, terrorist attacks.

Sometimes Mary would join in, although she never understood the animals and just know Seto was saying 'Yeah', 'Uh huh', 'That's cruel!', 'Thanks for telling me!'. He would translate for Mary, but she didn't mind if she didn't understand at all.

There was one thing she did understand about the animals though. Whenever Seto was away, sometimes he would tell Hanao or any other of his animal friends to keep Mary company. Sometimes they even bring flowers and tiny portable gifts for her.

Mary would always love Seto's ability. Because it was just so amazing. But the best thing about it was because of it that he was able to find her and bring her out into the world.

~.~.~.~.~

**Deceiver: SHORT AGAIN! XP ****Remember the beginning of Imagination Forest that Mary mention a bird flies by her house? I think that bird told Seto about her **(¬‿¬)


	6. Momo

~.~.~.~.~

**Momo: I will captivate you**

~.~.~.~.~

Before, she wanted everyone to ignore her.

Before, she wanted to be normal.

Before, she wanted to stop being an idol.

She just wanted to be her old self again. Bright, cheerful and have no need to run away whenever anyone gushed at her.

The ideas of being the center of attention, everyone idolizing her for no real reason scared her to bits. Dramas, singing debuts, interviews and concerts were just not her thing. She had no interest in any of those, yet everyone wanted her to do it because she was Kisaragi Momo, the idol who could capture everyone's eyes despite whatever her tastes were.

"Nervous?"

Momo turned around, not really surprised to see almost the entire gang behind her. She sort of predicted them using Kido's Eyes to sneak into her dressing room.

"A little…" Momo admitted sheepishly. After years of being an idol, she was going to hold her first concert in front of thousands of fans. The thought of her actually doing it still hadn't left her at all.

Mary ran up to her, the white hood that covered her face revealed her smile as she jumped up and hugged her blonde friend.

"You'll be great! I know it!" Mary chimed. Momo smiled at this and hugged her back.

Kano smirked at the two. "Are you going to use it though?"

Momo blinked at him, letting go of her medusa friend as she silently stared back at the Liar. It had taken a while, but Momo had finally gotten a bit of control on her Eyes. She could now keep it off with her own will, but when it came back on it would be difficult to keep it in order.

"If you use it now, everyone will know you as the captivating Kisaragi Momo," Kano went on. "If you don't, you'll just be you, a normal girl. Everyone is here because of your Eyes, so if you don't use them, you might lose half your fans and your career as an-"

A karate chop to the blond's head followed by a quick red flash from Mary's Eyes silenced him at once. "Kano! It is not nice to tease Kisaragi-san like that!" Seto scolded, oblivious to the fact that his friend was just a human statue now.

"Just ignore the idiot here," Kido told her as she gave Kano another hit to the head. Momo giggled at the charade, it never grew old to her.

"Momo-chan! You'll be on soon so get ready!" a backstage staff peered into the room, not noticing anyone else in the room.

"I'll be right there!" she called back before the staff disappeared. Sighing, she got up, patting down her infamous idol costume before fixing the ribbon behind her back. "Well…this is it!"

Mary nodded enthusiastically. Kido gave the idol a small smile before she and Seto lifted Kano up and left, with Mary close behind. Momo leaned back against her vanity table, the smile still on her face before she ran to her closet and grabbed her pink hoodie and the iPhone in the pocket.

Before, she wanted everyone to ignore her. That was not true as she now loved the attention her friends gave her.

Before, she wanted to be normal. She was was normal enough since she had some control on her Eyes.

Before, she wanted to stop being an idol. It would be bad to abandon her fans anyway, so she would have to keep on being an idol.

Stepping out with her hoodie in hand, she confidently walked towards the entrance to the stage, her black high heels clicking with each step. Silently, while her Eyes were heating up, she unlocked the screen and opened up a picture of her and the gang together. Everyone's smile just made her feel more confident with what she was about to do.

She would use her Eyes. She would steal everyone's hearts and make them pay attention to this captivating idol. Now, as she stood at the entrance, hearing the cheers everyone was giving, she knew she wasn't alone.

Because out there, her friends were watching her.

~.~.~.~.~

**Deceiver: If you're wondering where everyone else was. Shintaro and Konoha had to keep Hibiya seated since he didn't want to see Momo's concert. Ene of course was in Shintaro's iPhone.**


	7. Shintaro

**Deceiver: Won't update more until the end of the week! REPORTS!**

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**Shintaro: As someone Ayano trust…**

~.~.~.~.~

The summer's heat was really strong today. The cicadas' cries echoed throughout the city as the sun beat down onto the earth. The home of the Kisaragi siblings was no different; the place was literally bathed in the heat's wave. Shintaro cursed under his breath, feeling too hot to even move from his bed. Even Ene didn't bother with teasing him, the computer was so heated up that she couldn't even move properly.

"Argh," they both moaned, rolling onto their stomachs at the same time. Shintaro lifted his head up to see what time it was on the alarm clock. 3:45pm…he had lived without his computer for almost six hours excluding the ones he spent on sleeping. That was a record.

"Master, your moans are disgusting," Ene muttered half-heartedly. Shintaro gave her a cold glare. "Wow, keep that up and you'll be as scary as Leader-san."

"And if you keep rolling around like that, you'll be as disgusting as I am," the teenage boy shot back and plopped his head back on the pillow, ignoring the cyber girl's yells. Too much effort to keep arguing under this heat anyway, so might as well laze around the room for the whole day.

"Mekakushi-Dan Member No. 7, Kisaragi Shintaro-kuuuuun!" Kano suddenly burst through the door, successfully making the HikiNEET jump out of his bed and onto the floor. Only Kano was laughing at him when Kido and Seto came in. They had a habit of sneaking into his house to fetch him and his mother never knew about their presence.

"Shintaro, get your butt off the floor. We're on a mission," stated the leader of their gang. The eldest boy rubbed his behind, glaring at the blond cat boy before giving Kido a look of disbelief.

"What? Already? _Under this heat?_"

"Yeah, it seems Kisaragi-san got herself into trouble while getting to the base," Seto informed him simply. Oblivious to the horrific look on his face, he continued, "What's more, Konoha-san is missing, so we have to look for him."

"Noooooo_oooo!_" Shintaro complained as his body slumped against the bed, eyes glazed over as he thought about how long it would take for this to be over with. Finding Momo would be easy if they check the last place her 'fans' spotted her, but Konoha wasn't as easy. It was like that guy had teleportation ability! Which was half true since he could get into Kagerou Days.

"_Now!_"

At Kido's command, Shintaro jumped up, hand already grabbing for his iPhone (Ene was already vibrating about once he held onto it) and shot straight out the door. The sooner this was over, the better.

"Wait," Shintaro almost growled, annoyed with the grouchy girl's demand. Lately, she had been very harsh on him. The training she had putting him through for better control of his Eyes were strict compared to Momo' and Hibiya's. He turned around; ready to snap if it was anything minor, yet he paused when he saw Kido holding up his red jersey. "You forgot your uniform. Get it on quickly."

She threw it at him, waiting once he caught it. The shut in stared at the attire, not sure what to do. "Well?" Kano asked.

Shintaro looked up at them, a bit confused. "My uniform? This?"

All three of the first members of the Mekakushi-Dan blinked at him, as if astounded by what he just said. Kano and Seto gave each other a quick glance before they landed on Kido, whose eyes were covered by her green bangs. Shintaro had a bad feeling about this, wondering if he hit a nerve. He glanced down at the jersey, blinking at the bright red color before he realized what he just said. "Er, I mean-"

Not letting him finish, Kido stride right up to him, her face right in front of his as she gave him the angriest, yet hurtful, glare he had ever seen.

"Kisaragi Shintaro, Ayano nee-chan gave you these," the girl's finger jabbed right between the eighteen years old's eyes. "We expect you, as someone who nee-chan trust, to fill out her duties and obligations during her absence and wear the colour of a hero with pride. Just because I'm not giving up my role as the leader to you doesn't mean you can slack off in this gang. _Understand?_"

Without letting him reply, Kido walked away, head held high with her hands in her hoodie's pocket. Shintaro gapped at her, starting to feel guilty for what he just said. He felt a pat on his back, which belong to Kano as he gave him an apologetic smile.

"Please excuse our leader," he said, "she's just really sensitive when it comes to Ayano-nee's color."

Shintaro didn't buy it. "You're mad at me too, aren't you?"

"Of course not!" _Yes I am._

Sighing, Shintaro gave up and put his jersey on. Another pat on his back, and he looked up to see it was from Seto.

"She's trying to be easy on you, really," he said, a sad smile on his face. "She's not making you wear nee-chan's scarf at least, so don't take it too hard."

"What about you though? Are you mad?"

The tall man shook his head. "I wouldn't call it mad, just upset that you didn't want to wear your jersey." Shintaro hoped that was true. When the Trio found out he knew Ayano, Seto was the one who went the most ballistic, especially when he picked up Ayano's feelings through his Eyes. The tallest teenager patted Shintaro's back again. "You'll get used to it. I mean, look at Kido and I!" Seto gestured to his green overall. "I still wear it in this weather! And Kido's even worse because her hoodie is thicker than all of our clothes!"

The boys made their way out of the house, where Kido waited. Without a word, they head out on their mission under the harsh heat. And while they were at it, Shintaro thought about Kido's role, and burden, as the leader of the gang Ayano created for them.

~.~.~.~.~

**Deceiver: And this takes place before Kido: We're not replacing her.**


End file.
